Community Sports News

Nadel and Ingel Take Gold in Powerlifting

25 November 2015

By ILAN HERRMANN for SA Jewish Report | 12 November 2015 - The first question Johannesburg’s Carmit Nadel had put to her as she arrived in Meknes, Morocco with her husband and fellow powerlifter, Nic Ingel, for the African Powerlifting Championship was accusatory and aggressive: “Are you from Israel?”

The two were representing South Africa and were there for two reasons: To inspire collective representation from Africa in the sport so as to convince the Olympic International Committee (OIC) to include powerlifting as an Olympic sport and then, too, they were obviously there to compete and win!

Powerlifting is a strength sport that consists of three attempts at maximal weight on three lifts: squat, bench press and dead lift. Eleven South Africans competed in Morocco. The environment wasn’t the most pleasant so Nic and Carmit left early, soon after the tournament. Nic, who has been powerlifting for four years, took the gold in Master 1, age category 40-49, weight division 93-105 kg. Amazingly, Carmit took gold as well, winning Master 1, age category 40-49, weight division under 63kg.

Carmit, who has been powerlifting for two years and trains six days a week, is a huge proponent of the sport. “It is a huge self-esteem and confidence builder and I recommend it to anyone and everyone. The benefits are enormous and honestly, life changing.” Nic who is an instructor at a training venue that he runs in Johannesburg, says it is a sport that you can take part in from as young an age as 14 to people in their 90s. “It must be done with a trainer as technique is all-important and that will make all the difference,” he says. “It’s an incredible sport that instils discipline and humility. Once you get a taste of it, it’s magnetic. You’re competing with yourself all the time and it has an immense physiological benefit from fitness, to strength, to even weight loss.”

Having had a successful representation from Africa in the sport, an appeal is being drafted to the OIC to include the sport as an Olympic event. Currently there is no support from the government’s sports ministry, so everything from training, to events and even national representation, is privately financed by each participant. Carmit is gearing up for next year’s World Powerlifting Championship in Texas, which will require as much as R50 000 per athlete to compete.